Social Work: Ldrship for Racial Justice

Seminar on creating racial justice through leadership. The 7 C's of leadership development are explored: consciousness of self, congruence, commitment, collaboration, common purpose, controversy with civility, and citizenship. These concepts are applied to explorations of racism and racial justice.

Open to Degree and PACE students

Leadership for Racial Justice is a three-credit seminar on how to create racial justice through leadership. The 7 C's of leadership development are explored: consciousness of self, congruence, commitment, collaboration, common purpose, controversy with civility, and citizenship. These concepts are applied to explorations of racism and racial justice. Course Objectives This course will focus on learning outcomes to deepen the understanding of how to create racial justice through leadership. By the end of the course, students will be able to: 1. Understand race and racism in the United States at individual and systemic levels through historical and/or contemporary issues 2. Describe and apply the Social Change Model of Leadership Development as a framework for racial justice 3. Examine individual strengths, values, identities, and leadership skills 4. Design a project by using individual and collective skills to mobilize oneself and work collaboratively for racial justice

Each student contributes to the learning experience for others through completing readings and assignments in advance of the class. We expect active participation of all students. By active participation, we mean critically reading all assigned materials prior to each class, thinking about the relationship of the readings to your life and work, asking questions, contributing in small groups, and being engaged in class discussion. Active engagement and participation are important; however, participation does not mean merely verbal interaction or taking up airtime. Participation is not based on the frequency of participation but the quality. We encourage each of you to challenge yourself to contribute as fully as possible. Attendance Your attendance is essential to the functioning of the class. If you must be absent from class for reasons of illness or other obligations, please send an e-mail message to your facilitator in advance of class. If you miss a class, you will be responsible for assignments due, material covered, and any handouts distributed during that class session. Please arrive on time for all class meetings. At some point during the semester, you may need to isolate or quarantine. You should contact the course facilitator to make arrangements to discuss missed work. Students who are asymptomatic in quarantine are expected to continue their academic work. If you are unable to attend, please notify your course facilitator.

Attendance and Participation We will assign 1/2 attendance point per class session. We will assign 3 points for participation which we will let you decide for yourself at the end of the course (3). March Book Report March is rich with themes that have important meaning both during the Civil Rights movement and now. Racial Justice, civic engagement, and intersectionality are some examples of themes that are interwoven throughout March. For this assignment, pick a theme from the book that resonates with you. There are three components to this assignment: 1) overview one theme and highlight the theme through three examples in the book, 2) describe how this theme relates to the Leadership model and 3) describe how this theme relates to your life. Leadership for Racial Justice Philosophy A philosophy statement reflects one’s leadership values through examples. In this assignment, students will describe how their values define their approach to leadership for racial justice. Students must include one value for each category within the Social Change Model of Leadership (individual, group, society/community). Provide examples from one’s own experiences to illuminate how to create racial justice through leadership. Racial Justice Project (group project) The Racial Justice Project is your opportunity to dream big and envision how you may create racial justice through leadership. There are two components to this assignment: Proposal: Complete the proposal form that includes (1) your group’s chosen racial justice issue, (2) three values from the leadership philosophy, and (3) the format to your exhibit. Exhibit: Your exhibit may take on a variety of formats. We encourage creativity, and you may choose to present your Racial Justice Project as a graphic novel, Op-Ed, traditional poster, or another multimedia format. Your exhibit must include the following components: (1) overview of your chosen racial justice issue, (2) overview of values from the leadership philosophy, (3) a future project that will address and promote positive racial justice through leadership.